Snipes, Fights, and Cold Nights
by temporary relief
Summary: What happens to Mac and Stella as they face their toughest case? A sniper is loose in NYC, and it's going to take the entire team to solve this. SMacked with hints of DL and HawkesOC.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters. I do own my own character but she is taken by Dr. Sheldon ****Hawkes****. I guess it's a good thing that I do not own the characters because if I did the world would be a dirtier place.**

**Notes: This is my first CSI****:NY**** fan ****fic**** on this site. I have written one by myself and am currently working on a sequel of a combined fan ****fic**** on the ****CSI****:Miami**** message board. This is a ****SMacked****fic**** with hints of DL and ****HawkesOC****. I wrote this because I can never find any ****SMacked****fics****. Please R & R. Constructive criticism is wanted. This is a slight crossover with House M.D.**

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_Buzz. Buzz. Buzz._ Detective Mac Taylor's cell phone was going off. He woke up, mumbled something under his breath, and answered it.

"Taylor," Mac said groggily into the speaker of his Treo.

"Mac, it's Flack. We have a scene at 1st Avenue and East 6th Street," Flack replied the wind blowing around him.

"Okay I'll be there," Mac hung up. He went through his morning routine and drove to the address. He shivered when he got out. Even for New York City, it was cold. The entire team was already there obviously having had at least 3 espressos each.

"So what happened here, Hawkes?" Mac asked looking at the two dead bodies. He was sickened at the brutality of the murders.

"Our female victim, Natalie Connard, was beaten then shot execution style. Our killer missed and hit her in the shoulder, and she died of exsanguinations. Then the murderer shot her in the head after she was good and dead. Our male victim, Justin Connard, was killed after his wife. He was strangled then shot in the head for good measure after he was dead too. Mac this guy is sick," Hawkes spat with disgust.

The team fought the brutal cold while they processed the scene. The wind chill had to be in the negatives, and the team knew it.

"Alright Mac, Montana and I are going to the lab before we freeze to death. We will go to autopsy get official COD though Hawkes is probably right. We will be in trace," Danny yelled to Mac. The wind made it impossible to hear very well, but Mac just nodded. After several more hours they had finished with the scene, and Mac, Hawkes, Stella, and Flack went to the lab. Flack went to the break room to wait for a lead to follow up on. Mac and Stella went to DNA, and Hawkes went to the fingerprint lab. After processing ever single piece of evidence for prints, Hawkes collected what he had and sent the evidence to Mac and Stella in DNA.

"Thanks Hawkes," Mac said to the doctor. Then for the next 6 hours Stella and him processed the evidence and found limited DNA. Danny had gotten the bullets from the autopsy and left Lindsay with the trace to go to ballistics.

"Bottabing," Danny said as he found the owner of the gun used to kill the couple. He raced to tell Mac and Stella. Danny was not watching where he was going and sort of ran into the glass door of the DNA lab. Mac and Stella looked over to the door and saw Danny on the ground. They put two and two together, and they burst out laughing. Danny came in the room with the suspect's name in hand.

"Danny, you okay there?" Mac asked not succeeding at stifling his laughter.

"I'm fine. I have the suspect's name," Danny said embarrassed.

"That's great. Where does he live?" Stella questioned Danny. She stole the document anyway and handed it to Mac.

"New Jersey. Let's go," Mac told them halfway through the door.

"Whoa Mac! Wait up a bit," Stella called after him. She and Danny jogged to catch Mac. Hawkes and Lindsay were in the break room talking to Flack.

"The suspect he is in…" Mac started.

"New Jersey, we already know from the trace and fingerprints," Lindsay interrupted.

"Let's go," Mac impatiently said.

"Shouldn't we at least wait to call NJPD?" Stella asked.

"This guy has had enough time to get back to his house. He could leave by the time they get him," Mac answered not thinking clearly.

"Do we have any evidence that he is in New Jersey right now?" Stella inquired trying to slow Mac down.

"Paid with a credit card at a restaurant," Flack answered for Mac.

"Okay then let's go," Stella said. The team rolled their eyes. It was cold outside and they could have NJPD pick him up. Nevertheless they followed their superior out. The drive down was tiring for the CSI's. Danny, Lindsay, Hawkes, and Flack went in one car. Mac wanted to drive his own vehicle down there, and Stella went with him.

They finally arrived at the address. Mac and Flack went to the door to arrest the suspect. Stella, Lindsay, Danny, and Hawkes were getting their kits ready to process the house. Mac yelled the protocol "NYPD." When there was no answer Flack kicked in the door.

"Mr. Athins this is the NYPD. Come out with your hands on your head," Mac ordered. They heard noises so they readied their guns. Mac went right, and Flack went straight. Mac turned around when he reached a dead end. He found Flack on the ground seizing then a shot rang out. Flack stopped seizing for a moment while blood started to come from his leg. Mac fired his gun in the direction the shots came from. He heard a grunt as the suspect went down.

"Hawkes, get in here! Flack's injured!" Mac bellowed outside. He then called dispatch where they sent an ambulance to the address. Hawkes was applying pressure to the wound. After 3 minutes, the ambulance arrived and loaded Flack up. Mac looked over at the team. Danny, Lindsay, and Stella were standing there in shock. Hawkes was covered in Flack's blood. Mac looked at himself and found Flack's blood on him.

"He's going to make it Mac," Hawkes said adamantly. Mac was trying hard to believe him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: You know that I don't own the CSI's. I wish I did though.**

**Notes: What would happen if Mac met House? Well you are about to find out.**

**Chapter 2**

Dr. Gregory House was sitting in Exam Room One avoiding Cuddy. Nevertheless she found him and dragged him out of the room.

"If it's not your time of the month why are you so mad?" House asked to aggravate her. Cuddy rolled her eyes. If only the hospital didn't need him. She sighed.

"You have a case so get your butt up to your office. Your team is waiting," Cuddy ordered.

"They can't figure this out without me?" House asked not surprised.

"It's a cop. Now go up to your office," Lisa Cuddy again ordered. House didn't move.

"A cop why don't I just race there," House mocked.

"I will give you a week off of clinic duty," Cuddy bargained.

"And a steak dinner?" House asked.

"Fine. Now go," Cuddy ordered for a third time. House limped off to the elevator. He arrived at his floor and met two unfamiliar faces in his office. House got his cane ready to push them out.

"Dr. House?" Hawkes asked.

"Who's asking?" House replied sarcastically.

"I'm Dr. Sheldon Hawkes, and this is Det. Mac Taylor," Hawkes said putting his hand out for House to shake it. House ignored him.

"Chase didn't you tell these two that they can't be in my office?" House asked the handsome doctor.

"No," Chase responded in his accent.

"Did anyone tell them to leave?" House asked Foreman and Cameron. They both shook their heads. House sighed very loudly.

"Here are those medical reports you asked for. Faxed straight from the department," Mac broke the silence and handed the documents to House. He didn't even look at them. House just threw it on the table. Cameron looked at it.

"It says here that Det. Flack was in an explosion. Is he still on meds for that?" Cameron asked Hawkes. The CSI doc just nodded.

"You didn't know that he was in that explosion. Gosh. Do any of you watch the news?" House asked his team. They looked confused and scared to answer. Cameron and Chase looked at his medical chart. They were perplexed.

"Could it be an allergic reaction?" Cameron asked. House ignored her.

"Excuse me but she asked you a question," Mac said.

"Yeah I know," House replied.

"Infection?" Foreman asked.

"No," House said. He looked as if he knew what it was.

"Fungus?" asked Chase.

"Nope," House answered absentminded.

"Allergy?" Cameron said again.

"If you think it's an allergy then treat him for one," House said. Cameron left, and Chase followed.

"They are wrong," House stated.

"Then why let them treat Flack for it?" Hawkes asked.

"To teach them," House replied innocently.

"Is this what you do? Huh? You toy around with people's lives for your little game? You hide behind your degree like a filthy coward," Mac spat. House reacted to that and pushed Mac a little hard with his cane.

"House! You're assaulting an officer. Cuddy won't be happy with this," Foreman warned. Both Foreman and Hawkes were trying to stop their bosses from killing each other.

"So this is the great Detective Mac Taylor about to hit a cripple. That sounds like bad PR to me," House taunted.

"A cripple? That's what you call yourself. You want people to pity you so you can push them away. You make them feel like idiots because you can't face yourself. You wouldn't know loyalty if it punched you in the face," Mac said angered.

"Whoa Mac!" Hawkes warned. Mac walked out of the office ticked. He had to blow off some steam. He went to Flack's room. Stella, Lindsay, and Danny were around Flack who was sleeping.

"Mac, what happened?" Stella whispered when she saw his face.

"I see you haven't met Dr. House. Lucky you," Mac murmured back. Lindsay and Danny looked at each other. Mac didn't talk about people like that.

"Who is Dr. House?" Lindsay asked.

"Flack's doctor," Mac said in reply.

"What did he do?" Danny inquired.

"He is playing a game with Flack's life. Testing he calls it," Mac replied disgusted.

"Oh. Has he sent any medicine to give to Flack?" Stella questioned.

"Dr. Chase and Cameron didn't come by?" Mac inquired perplexed.

"If they didn't come here and they aren't in House's office where are they?" Lindsay asked. The team thought about it but couldn't come up with anything. Mac went to ask House this. The team didn't think that this was a good idea, but he didn't listen.

"Detective Taylor back for a rematch?" House taunted. He was really enjoying this.

"Your doctors never came by to treat Flack for whatever he didn't have," Mac got straight to the point.

"They didn't? Foreman know where they are?" House asked not caring.

"Where they are is their business. But if I had to guess I would say sleep lab or janitor's closet," Foreman said laughing.

"Aww they did it again," House said indifferent.

"Your doctors do it when they have patients?" Hawkes asked disgusted at how unprofessional that was.

"Uh yeah. Surprising isn't it?" House laughed. Mac and Hawkes looked very shocked at this. They thought that no one in the lab would do that. Maybe Danny and Lindsay but not during a case.

"Well can you come up with a real diagnosis?" Hawkes asked then he remembered something. "Flack is off his meds. He was complaining about the pain last week."

"Yeah but it wouldn't cause a seizure would it?" Mac reluctantly asked House.

"No it shouldn't," Hawkes answered instead of House.

"What if one of the pieces of the bomb broke off, got into his blood stream, clotted and he seizes?" Mac asked.

"Why didn't I think of that?" House asked sarcastically.

"Hawkes, I'm going to check on the rest of the team see what their thoughts are," Mac announced.

"This will be good cops figuring this out," House said.

"We are scientists," Hawkes said. Mac left the room and went to the team. He didn't get to talk to them because Flack flat lined. Mac called for help. Some nurses came and brought Flack back. Mac called Hawkes.

"Hawkes, Flack just flat lined," Mac hung up.

"Dr. House, he just flat lined." Hawkes said. House stood up and looked confused as if he were wrong.

"House you were wrong it is an allergy," Foreman said. He and Hawkes went to Flack's room.

"We need to X-Ray him," Foreman announced.

"Okay. What for?" Mac asked.

"We think that part of the bomb mechanism left in him caused him to have an allergic reaction. When he didn't have his meds, his body thought that the bacteria and such from the trigger was harmful and attacked it. We need to find out where it is to see if we can remove it now that it has moved. That was what caused the seizure. If we can get this out of him he will be fine and won't need the meds," Foreman said. After several hours of surgery, Foreman came back with a piece of the bomb trigger that had been in Flack for 2 years. The team celebrated. Stella hugged Mac. Danny and Lindsay forgot where they were and kissed. Mac, Stella, and Hawkes turned and looked at them. When the pair finally split apart, they blushed.

"Umm that wasn't what it looked like," Lindsay said.

"That was exactly what it looked like," Hawkes replied.

"Anyways the entire lab has known since the drug heist," Mac said.

"You aren't going to say anything to the brass?" Danny asked. Mac was about to say something but Stella cut him off.

"Na. As long as you two stay professional, and I mean it," Stella warned.

"When did you get here?" Flack inquired waking up.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters blah ****blah****blah**

**Notes: The team is back in the NYC and they have closed the other case. Flack is in crutches but is making a full recovery. Mr. ****Athins**** did kill the couple, but he died when he was shot by Mac. Could this be the start of something new for Mac and Stella?**

**Chapter 3**

Detective Don Flack Jr. was swinging in his crutches when Mac got to the scene. It was a warm March morning in the Big Apple. Birds were actually around. Flack was imitating a Cardinal, a rare bird in the city. Flack was never a good whistler so instead of the laser sound of the cardinal he sounded like a tractor. The CSI started laughing.

"Good morning Don," Mac greeted him. "I see you are feeling better."

"Yeah just two hours more rehab and I will be back," Flack responded.

"That's great. What do we have?" Mac asked looking at the gunshot victim. He knelt on the ground and began to process.

"One Peter Andrucci. He is a third generation American. He was found by a Cynthia Davis. She was walking her dog when she saw what she said looked like a dog rolling in red paint. Apparently she has vision problems," Flack read off his notebook.

"It looks to be a shot from a high powered rifle," Mac said out loud.

"Sniper? In New York City?" Flack asked surprised.

"Wouldn't be the first and won't be the last," Mac replied simply. He was processing the perimeter when Stella arrived.

"Well it's a great day isn't it?" Mac asked her when she got into the perimeter.

"Maybe for you but not for the vic here," Stella answered yawning.

"It looks like a sniper shot. What do you think, Stella?" Mac asked even though he knew that she thought the same thing as him.

"Definitely. Where is the bullet?" Stella said looking at the body.

"It's not a through and through. Are you saying there is no bullet?" Mac asked walking over to the body.

"That's exactly what I said. You realize what this means?" A concerned Stella inquired of Mac.

"Yeah our killer came back for his bullet. This guy is arrogant coming in broad daylight to get his bullet," Mac replied. Stella nodded in agreement.

"But it might be good news for us," Stella announced.

"Why do you say that?" Mac answered already knowing.

"The killer had to touch the body to get the bullet out which is good for us because he might have left part of himself on this guy," Stella smiled. This was great news. Mac smiled too. They might get this guy.

"Do you mind processing around the body?" Mac asked. Stella shook her head, and Mac returned to the perimeter. After an hour Mac found something important. A piece of paper with a message typed on it. The message read: DETECTIVE TAYLOR AND DETECTIVE BONASERA YOU CAN'T CATCH ME!

Mac called Stella over. They must have read it ten times each before they said anything.

"Well it's not a coincidence that our names are on it. Someone would have to know that we would work this case, but that information is only available in the department. So either this sniper is in the department or he has a partner in the department. Stell, no one besides us and Flack should know about this. We have to wait to know who this is. A sniper's two best advantages are patience and the element of surprise. We have to be able to surprise the sniper," Mac warned Stella. They were both stuck on this note. It was the biggest piece of evidence on the case. Maybe just maybe they could get a workable print off of it. Stella put her hand on his shoulder. A chill went through Mac that had nothing to do with the sniper.

"We will catch him. We always do," Stella reminded him. Mac looked in her eyes and found reassurance.

"I know. I just can't shake this," Mac said returning to the perimeter to process. Stella processed elsewhere. The ME's office had received the body already. He wasn't concentrating totally on the scene. There was a sniper just out of his reach, and Mac knew that this wouldn't be the last scene connected by this guy. After x amount of time, the duo left for the lab. Flack had gone to the detective's bureau. Mac went straight to the fingerprint lab. He spent at least an hour trying different methods of printing. He found one partial. He ran it through the police data base. No hits. He slammed his fist down on the table.

"Have you tried AFIS?" Stella asked walking in.

"No. I just tried the police data base. No hits. Here let me try AFIS," Mac searched it through AFIS. After hours of searching there were no hits.

"Mac, this guy is smart. We can catch him though. We always catch them. Let's not give up. Have you sampled the ink or the paper?" Stella questioned. Mac showed her the results.

"Okay so basically this is just common paper and printer ink. We will find him," Stella told him again and again not to give up.

"Stell, have you gone to autopsy yet?" Mac asked.

"No, I was just going there. Come on let's go." Stella said about to leave.

"Hold on I have to put the evidence up," Mac replied. He put the piece of paper back in the evidence bag, put the bag in the case box, and followed Stella to autopsy.

"Just in time," Sid rang out as they entered the autopsy lab.

"In time for what?" Stella asked.

"To take the trace, tox, and prints to the lab for me," Sid said handing them to Mac.

"What's the official COD?" Stella inquired.

"Not being shot, but the bullet being taken out. He died of exsanguination. The bullet acted like a plug, and once the plug is removed the blood drains," Sid replied handing the autopsy report to Stella. The two CSI's left for the trace, tox, and print labs. After dropping them off for the lab techs, Mac and Stella went to the break room for some coffees.

"Thanks," Stella said as Mac handed her a coffee. They sat in silence for a while enjoying each other's company while they went over the case in their heads.

"Our perp leaves nothing behind. Maybe some prints but we don't know if we will have a hit in AFIS. I just do not get this case," Mac said loudly. Stella and him were very confused, and they felt like they were getting migraines. Adam walked in with the results on the fingerprints.

"Please tell me good news," Stella told Adam. He didn't look happy at the results.

"It's not good news. The prints they match Detective Lionel. He retrieved the bullet," Adam said tossing the results on the table and walking away. Mac and Stella were depressed. They were hoping that the sniper wouldn't be a cop. It was a long phone call to Flack. After an hour, Detective Ryan Lionel was in the interrogation room.

"Why am I here?" Lionel asked.

"We found your print on a dead man," Mac said sliding the picture of the print to him.

"So what? I was a first responder. My print should be there," Lionel answered not worried about the accusation.

"Right next to his wound?" Mac angrily asked.

"I was checking for a bullet. He was obviously dead so I was looking for the bullet. There wasn't one," Lionel replied.

"How come you didn't tell us that?" Flack inquired.

"The bullet wasn't coming back because I wanted it to," Lionel answered. Mac shook his head. This guy was an idiot, but he was right. His print would be there because of that. They had to release Lionel. Mac was still suspicious of him. He went to Stella in the break room and told her what happened.

"No way," Stella said infuriated. Mac had just told her what happened. They again discussed the case. Nothing new. The results on tox were negative. No foreign substances went into this guy. The trace results were inconclusive. Stella's phone began to ring. It was a private number.

"Detectives, I expected better of you. Like I said you can't catch me," The voice hung up. Mac and Stella looked at each other.

"Stella, get your phone to the AV lab. We have to find out who that was and where they were. I'll get the team to the AV lab. We need the entire team working on this," Mac told her. She rushed to the AV lab, and Mac paged the team.

"Mac, what is this about?" Danny asked as he entered the AV lab. Lindsay and Hawkes entered right after him.

"Look at this," Mac showed them the note he found at the crime scene.

"Listen to this," Mac played the phone call Stella just received.

"Mac, what do we have on this guy?" Hawkes asked.

"Nothing absolutely nothing," Mac said angrily. The team sat together and talked about the case whenever they could. In the months to come they found nothing new. They had broken the audio into so many different things that they couldn't make anything out anymore. They had to continue with other cases. Mac still could never think about anything else. The case was constantly running in his mind, and it didn't help that the victim's family would call every week to see if there was any new evidence. Then in the middle of September, Mac was called out to a scene. When he got there, he noticed the similarities between this seen and the other sniper scene. Mac went over to the perimeter where he found another message. This message read: DETECTIVE TAYLOR I TOLD YOU THAT YOU COULD NOT CATCH ME. NOW I WILL SIT AND WATCH AS YOU USELESSLY TELL YOUR TEAM EVERYTHING IN THE VAIN ATTEMPT OF TRYING TO CATCH ME.

"Mac, what is it?" Stella asked as she got to the scene.

"A message from our sniper," Mac replied showing her the note. Stella looked at the note then back at Mac. How were they going to catch this guy?


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own the CSI****:NY**** characters, but if I did Mac and Stella would already be together.**

**Notes: A sniper is loose in the NYC can our CSI's stop him before he strikes again? The OC is introduced this chapter. Her name is Detective Kelly C. Higgins.**

**Chapter 4**

Mac and Stella looked at that note for what seemed like an eternity. Then a young female detective walked over to them.

"Detective Taylor and Detective Bonasera," she said reading their names off of a card.

"Yes," Mac responded facing the new comer.

"I'm Detective Kelly Higgins. I am taking this scene for Detective Flack," She read his name off the card too.

"Yes and?" Mac said. Stella gave him a _don't__ be rude to the new girl_ type of look.

"I came to tell you about the vic. His name was Robert Corinth. He was a stock broker. He was found by Natalie Daniel while she was taking her morning jog. She is being treated for shock right now. The paramedics tried to find the guys pulse and couldn't. They also tell me that there isn't a bullet in this guy. I've looked for myself _with gloves_, and I found that it looked to be a large caliber possibly a sniper. And there seems to be something written in blood next to him. This is what I made out from it. _I told you._ I don't know what that means, but I have a feeling that you do?" Higgins asked. Mac and Stella were silently debating whether or not to tell her.

"There is a sniper plaguing New York City. He has been leaving notes and taunting us. This is our second crime scene," Mac replied. The young detective walked off. Thirty minutes later Hawkes arrived. When Hawkes was processing the scene with the other two CSI's, he was always looking over at Higgins. The young detective was doing the same.

"Looks like Hawkes has a crush," Stella told Mac.

"Really? I never would have noticed," Mac said sarcastically. Stella gave him a playful punch and continued to process. When they finished processing the scene, the three CSI's went back to the lab with the minimal evidence. Mac took the note to the print lab where he printed it. He found the same partial as the last time. He ran it through AFIS and the police data base. Still there were no hits. Mac tested the paper and ink and he found the same results as the last time. Nothing absolutely nothing new was found. Stella, Mac, and Hawkes were in the break room talking about the case.

"Who was that new detective?" Mac asked.

"Detective Higgins," Hawkes answered.

"What happened to Flack?" Stella asked and Mac shrugged. They continued talking about the case and the case before that, but they came up with nothing new so they changed the conversation.

"Hawkes, are you going to ask that new detective out on a date?" Stella asked much to Hawkes surprise.

"I've thought about it, but I don't know," Hawkes said fingering a piece of paper.

"What is that?" Stella questioned Hawkes about the piece of paper.

"Her phone number," Hawkes replied smiling.

"Nice going Hawkes," Stella patted him on the back.

"Thanks. I got it at the scene. She looked pretty happy when I asked her for it," Hawkes said still smiling.

"Mac, what do you think? Should Hawkes ask her out?" Stella asked Mac.

"Sure," Mac answered not paying attention.

"Mac, do you even know what we are talking about?" Stella asked.

"No, but I just cannot figure this case out. I have to go to autopsy," Mac said.

"I have already been. Nothing. No trace, tox, prints. Nothing shoved down the vic's throat. Nothing, Mac," Hawkes replied. Mac sat back down. The trio sat in silence. No new leads. No hits in AFIS or the police data base.

"Let's not give up," encouraged Stella.

"Yeah you keep saying that, but we have nothing," Mac replied angrily. This surprised Hawkes and Stella.

"Mac, we are going to catch this guy," Stella told him.

"No we aren't. He is too good," Mac said his temper flaring. His phone rang. A private number. Mac answered it.

"Well, well, well the great Mac Taylor is giving up. I'm not surprised. You should've given up months ago when you got to the first scene. You have a day before I strike again. Tell your girlfriend or whoever Detective Bonasera is that she should stop trying to trace this call. It's no use because you can't catch me," the voice hung up. Mac looked at Stella and Hawkes.

"Get the team together. We aren't giving up yet," Mac announced as he went to the AV lab. This was infuriating to Mac. This guy was taunting them because he was just out of their reach. Not this time Mac vowed to himself, not this time. When he reached the AV lab he pulled up the phone call. In five minutes the team was surrounding the computer with the message on it. He played it for them.

"Who is this guy?" Lindsay asked. The entire team was worried. Someone was going to die because they couldn't figure out who this guy was.

"What did you two do to have him target you?" Danny asked. Mac and Stella gave him an _if looks could kill_ look.

"Nothing. He had our names on his little messages. He has been taunting us," Mac said coolly.

"Well he has to have some reason. He could just as well have said Detective Messer and Detective Monroe," Danny replied.

"We didn't do anything," Stella emphasized this.

"Anyways it's not relevant. There is someone out there who is going to be killed tomorrow if we can't solve this," Mac stated greatly stressed.

"Okay, okay so what do we know about the sniper besides the fact that he is a sniper?" Danny asked.

"That he takes the bullet out of his victims in plain sight. He leaves notes for Stella and I and calls us too. He is arrogant and is bound to make a mistake," Mac said quickly.

"So let's look over the evidence again," Danny suggested. They looked over every bit of evidence. For hours they looked at case photos.

"Hawkes, what's that?" Mac asked about the message written in blood.

"That's just one of the messages," Hawkes replied.

"No it's a print," Mac said as he pointed to the last letter in the message.

"He made a mistake?" Hawkes asked.

"Yeah. I'm going to run this through AFIS and the police data base and see what we get," Mac replied walking out of the room. He ran the print through the police data base and got a hit. Officer Justin Franks. Mac went back to the AV lab with the results.

"We have a hit. Officer Justin Franks. His print was in the blood. He was not a first responder, and he was nowhere near this case. I flipped the partial I got on the message, and it matches his. He is our guy," Mac said walking in the AV lab. Hawkes called Higgins and told her to pick this guy up. Mac and Stella went to interrogation.

"Detective Taylor and Detective Bonasera what do I owe the honor," Franks said.

"We found your prints at two crime scenes. You weren't anywhere near the crime scenes those days. Your print in blood with the message _I told you_. Your print reversed on these messages sent to us. You have the ability to snipe. Your superior told me that you are quite good. You killed those two innocent people for what? So that you could show off?" Stella asked.

"Those are some heavy accusations. You should watch it," the petty officer threatened.

"I don't think that you are in a position to threaten," Mac stated.

"We know you did it. We want to know why you did it," Stella said. The suspect smirked.

"You want to know why. Well I could spin you a tale about how I was abused or whatever, but that would be lying. I did it because I could. It was thrilling to watch them die. The lights go out of their eyes. I felt powerful," Justin announced. The CSI's were sickened by this monster.

"You are going where you belong," Mac told him. The suspect stood up infuriated and spat on the two detectives. They glared at him as he left.

"I'm sorry Stella. I didn't expect that," Mac said handing her a handkerchief to wipe the spit off.

"What I really want to know is how he passed the psych evaluation," Stella said laughing.

"Me too," Mac said wiping the spit off of himself too.

"How about dinner to celebrate a killer off the streets," Mac asked. Stella agreed.

"What do you have in mind?" Stella asked. They continued to talk about dinner until they reached the car. Mac drove to his place where he made dinner, and they watched movies into the night. They fell asleep on the couch while watching _The Great Race_. Early morning they got a call out to a scene in Brooklyn. Higgins and Flack were the two detectives on it.

"Good morning Flack and Higgins," Stella said as she and Mac got out of the car.

"Another murder?" Mac asked.

"Another murder. Wasn't Stella wearing those clothes yesterday?" Flack asked Mac.

"Not what you think," Mac called laughing. He began to process the scene with Stella.

**Warning: This is not the end. I repeat this is not the end.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters and if I did Mac and Stella would be together.**

**Notes: Okay this thought came to my mind today. Picture the season finale after several episodes of flirting and romance, Mac and Stella are alone in his office and they had just come from some exciting case (since it's a season finale they probably have just faced death). They look like they are about to hug but Mac slows down and puts his hands on the small of her back and leans in to kiss her. Stella has her hands on his shoulders and also leans in. They start to kiss then you hear a ding**** as the elevator opens with Danny and Lindsay in it. Mac and Stella haven't heard the elevator and continue to kiss. Danny and Lindsay see the pair and hit the close door button on the elevator. The two CSI's in the elevator smile, and Lindsay says to Danny, "Finally." The camera returns to Mac and Stella and then fades out to the Executive Producer Jerry Bruckheimer. Okay that has nothing to do with this chapter but I had to write my thoughts. ****On with the story.**

**Chapter 5**

Detective Mac Taylor was sitting at his desk looking at old cases. There hadn't been a murder in a record of 9 days. He looked up when Stella walked in.

"Mac what are you doing here? It's half past midnight," Stella asked concerned.

"I could ask you the same thing," Mac replied yawning.

"I was putting up a case file," Stella said.

"For three hours?" Mac asked eyeing her suspiciously.

"Fine don't believe me," Stella answered in mock hurt. What was she going to tell him the truth? No he is better off without knowing she thought.

"I won't," Mac replied in mock anger. He could always tell her the real reason why he stayed. No she is better off without knowing he thought.

"So let me guess you are going to spend your night here looking at old case files instead of going home and sleeping?" Stella inquired.

"I was just putting these back in their stack," Mac lied. His desk was a mess. To him it looked okay, but to everyone else it was a cluttered mess.

"Should you be surprised when I tell you that I don't believe you?" Stella asked.

"I don't know," Mac replied exhausted. He was putting the case pictures and reports back in the folder. He probably hadn't slept in 3 days. Stella gave him a concerned look.

"Mac are you going to make me drive you to your place?" Stella questioned pushing him out of his chair.

"Okay, okay I will go home," Mac threw his hands up in surrender. He walked to the end of the hallway and entered the elevator. After the doors started to close he noticed Stella walking toward the elevator. Mac pushed the open button in the elevator. Stella entered the elevator.

"Thanks," Stella told him. He stared blankly off into the distance. The elevator doors chimed as it reached the garage level.

"See you tomorrow," Mac said as he got off the elevator and walked to his vehicle. Stella waved as she headed in the opposite direction to her car. Mac got to his place around one in the morning, and he crashed on his couch. He slept past his alarm and woke up with a start. He went through his routine about ten times as fast as normal. Yet Mac like always made it into work early. When Stella came in, she could have sworn that he was in the same spot she pushed him out of the night before.

"Mac you didn't come back up here after I left?" Stella asked walking into his office.

"Please Stella, I know when I'm beaten," Mac replied not looking up from his case files. He just continued to work while Stella stared at him not knowing what to think. She thought that she has to be used to this because, well, this is Mac. Stella stood there for a while then left a little mad that he wouldn't pay any attention to her even when she spoke to him.

"Come on Stella. He is your best friend nothing more. Mac is Mac. He doesn't show emotions," Stella said out loud to herself.

"Talking to yourself Stella?" Lindsay asked while she stood in the doorway. She didn't look concerned, but she was wondering what Stella meant about Mac.

"Oh just thinking out loud," Stella said as she poured herself a cup of coffee. She wasn't in the mood to talk about Mac. Then again she was never in the mood to talk about him. Mac is Mac, and she would leave it at that. The younger CSI didn't bug her about it, but Stella could tell that it was bugging Lindsay to not know. Stella grabbed a breakfast bar from the machine and sat down to eat it. Lindsay finally lost her patience.

"Okay Stella spill," Lindsay said rather forcefully.

"There is nothing to say," Stella stated. She wasn't going to talk about Mac behind his back. No matter what Lindsay said she wouldn't tell her that she was mad at Mac that he paid no attention to her even though he considered her his closest friend, and under no condition admit that she was in love with Mac. Nope she wasn't saying anything. To make sure she wouldn't even be slightly tempted to talk to Lindsay about Mac, she left the break room after she finished her little breakfast.

"See you around, Lindsay," Stella said as she left to go to DNA to run some cold cases. This was a tradition every time there was nothing to do in the lab. Lindsay stayed in the break room relaxing and enjoying the break from processing crime scenes.

"Good morning Montana," Danny chimed as he entered.

"Morning Danny," Lindsay responded sipping her coffee. She looked up.

"So Montana if we have no cases what do you want to do?" Danny asked mischievously.

"At the lab? No Danny not here. Mac will have our heads," Lindsay pointed out.

"True, true. So what were you talking about with Stella?" Danny asked.

"Surprisingly nothing," Lindsay replied. Danny perked up. Nothing how could it be nothing he thought.

"That's weird normally she is talkative," Danny said.

"Yeah. When I came in, she said something about Mac. Then I tried asking her about it, but she wouldn't say anything," Lindsay responded. Danny and Lindsay were leaning close together, and they were whispering. Danny shrugged. He had no idea what was going on. In his mind, he was lucky to be keeping up with this so far.

"I'm hungry," Danny announced as he got a bag of chips. Lindsay laughed at his breakfast choice.

"If you had gotten up earlier, you could have had some of the breakfast I made," Lindsay whispered.

"Montana, don't rub it in," Danny whined. His stomach growled.

"Goodness Danny your stomach is loud," Lindsay laughed. Danny just ate his chips. When he finished his chips, Lindsay broke the silence.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Lindsay asked.

"We are supposed to be going through cold cases. You know you see if there is any new DNA in CODIS or prints in AFIS," Danny replied getting up. Lindsay followed him to the locker room where they got their lab coats. Danny was struggling to get his arm in the coat.

"Very nice Danny. Let me help," Lindsay straightened it out for him.

"_Grazie infinite_," Danny said in Italian. They went to the print lab to run the cold cases. They were working for a couple of hours when they heard a _crash_. They ran into the hall to see what was going on. Mac and Stella were picking up papers.

"Stella, I'm so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going," Mac apologized over and over. Finally Stella shushed him.

"Mac it's okay. It's just a case file. Not the end of the world," Stella told him. Mac sorted out the case file and handed it back to her.

"Here you go," Mac said. He brushed against her as he left. Both of them felt a tingling sensation where they touched. Mac went to the break room and got a coffee. Stella returned to DNA. Danny and Lindsay returned to prints. After Mac finished his coffee, he went to help Stella in DNA.

"Stella so I was thinking. We haven't had a nice dinner in a while. How about tonight we out some place my treat?" Mac offered. He blushed.

"Okay," Stella answered smiling. Mac wasn't expecting her to say yes and dropped the empty test tube he was holding. Mac blushed even more when he swept the glass shards up.

"You two okay? I heard a crash," Danny said to them from the doorway.

"We're fine. I just dropped a test tube," Mac said getting back to running the DNA samples.

"Okay," Danny replied as he left the room. Stella was running a DNA sample she had run probably ten times that year. Still there was never a hit in CODIS until today.

"Yes!!" Stella exclaimed as she printed off the test results.

"What is it?" Mac asked.

"I got this guy. Finally," Stella exclaimed as she hugged Mac. He didn't know how to react plus he was holding a test tube with chemicals in it. Stella called Flack to arrest this guy. She was down in interrogation an hour later with Mac.

"Mr. Jefferson I bet you want to know why you are here," Stella told the suspect.

"Yeah I do. I was giving a car a new paint job, and this detective arrests me," Mr. Jefferson said.

"You killed a girl 5 years ago. Maria Evans. Do you remember her?" Stella asked.

"Yeah I remember her. My daughter's best friend. It was a tragedy that she was killed," Mr. Jefferson stated.

"Don't say that. Don't pretend to care. You murdered her. We found your skin cells under her nails," Stella angrily told him.

"What makes you say that it was me," he said grabbing her arm.

"I would let go if I were you," Mac said speaking up. He stood up.

"And if I don't?" Mr. Jefferson yanked Stella up. Stella twisted herself out of his grip. Before he could react, Mac pushed the suspect against the wall. Mac twisted the guys arm up. The suspect was crying out in pain.

"What did I tell you?" Mac whispered fiercely. He released Mr. Jefferson. The officer in the room put Mr. Jefferson in cuffs and sent him to Booking.

"Mac you didn't have to do that. I got out of it myself," Stella said secretly thankful that Mac was in the room with her.

"I'm sorry. I over reacted a bit," Mac smiled innocently. This made Stella laugh.

"It's impossible to stay mad at you isn't it," Stella told him as they went back to the lab.

"I suppose," Mac said smiling again.

"Stop it," Stella laughed.

"What?" Mac wondered as if he had no clue of what he was doing.

"The smiling. It's getting on my nerves," Stella said.

"Sorry," Mac couldn't help but smile. Stella playfully punched him.

"Come on Mac we have more cold cases waiting for us," She urged him into the DNA lab. They spent the remainder of shift there.

"Okay I will pick you up in two hours for dinner?" Mac asked Stella as they were leaving.

"That sounds good," Stella was blushing.

"Dressy casual," Mac told her before they went their separate ways. Mac changed into a different suit than he wore to work. When he went to pick up Stella, he was speechless.

"Do you like it?" Stella asked spinning around in her dress. Mac nodded.

"Not too dressy?" She inquired worried of over dressing.

"Not too dressy," Mac replied. He was extremely nervous going into the restaurant. What if he made a complete fool of himself? Mac did everything right that evening much to his surprise. He ordered crab linguine, and Stella ordered the same. They enjoyed the dinner. It was nice to take a break from life and the lab and eat a nice dinner. Mac paid as he promised and left a nice tip. He drove Stella home. He walked her up to her apartment, and kissed her on the cheek.

"Night Stella," Mac said as she opened the door to her apartment.

"Night Mac," Stella said as she went inside. Once she was inside Mac began the walk back to his car. He drove home and lay on the sofa pondering what had happened what had happened.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters, and I will say this again. If I did own them, Mac and Stella would be together.**

**Notes: Sorry about that scene I put on the last notes, but I had to share it with the world. ****LOL.**** Let's see. Is it the lack of danger that is bringing our characters together or is it just fate? Can Mac and Stella's friendship survive romantic advances? And if it can't survive can the team sur****vive**** the new found hatred? Did I just give away the chapter? ****I have a part where a ****song is**** in parentheses. I you want to you can look it up on ****youtube**** and listen to it while you read that part. I think that it fits better with the music. ****On with the story.**

**Chapter 6**

Detective Taylor was sitting at his desk. He was watching the lab like he always seemed to do. Hawkes was talking to Flack about something in the break room. Flack seemed to be hanging out there a lot lately. Danny was flirting with Lindsay. Mac thought he was testing the boundaries set by the lab. Stella was running more DNA from cold cases. Mac remembered when that investigator came from Philadelphia thinking that Stella killed someone ten years prior. No she was at the police academy. That was where they first met. He remembered how Claire introduced them. How Stella became one of his closest friends quickly. She was able to invade Mac's feelings and get him to say what he felt. Stella always joked about how Mac's feelings were in a place more secured than Fort Knox. That was the way Mac liked it. He didn't like showing his emotions or feelings.

"Mac, you okay? You've been staring off in the distance for a while," Stella said to him as she sat down in one of the two chairs in front of his desk. She looked concerned, but honestly she didn't know how to feel.

"Yeah, I was just watching the lab. Some days it's funny watching what happens. Danny and Lindsay trying to hide their relationship, Adam and Kendall flirting as if no one notices, and I think Hawkes did ask that detective out. There is a lot of romance in the lab if you haven't noticed," Mac replied. He was watching her now.

"You can tell all that from watching?" Stella asked amazed. Mac nodded. He was still looking at her.

"So are you going to work today or sit around watching us?" Stella asked quietly. Mac got up with a case file and headed to DNA. Stella followed.

"I was considering the second option, but I didn't want to be slapped," Mac joked.

"That's just mean," Stella replied in mock hurt.

"Sorry," Mac mumbled. He was busy running DNA through CODIS.

"Well my work is done, but CODIS has some work to do," Mac said pointing out the obvious.

"You could wait for a result," Stella was also pointing out the obvious. Mac started laughing.

"Okay, I will bite. What's so funny?" Stella asked.

"Adam in the trace lab," Mac replied. Stella looked over there. Adam was lip-synching with a test tube as a microphone.

"Should we go burst his bubble?" Stella laughed. Mac shook his head.

"No this is more entertaining," Mac was smiling. Some of the other lab techs had started to notice Adam. Some were getting out phones to take pictures. They were all thinking of the black mail they would have. One of the tox techs texted a picture to Danny who in turn showed it to Lindsay. They started watching Adam as he started to dance. Hawkes and Flack noticed too. They were laughing so hard. Kendall was in the trace lab laughing her head off. When Adam finished the song, some of the lab techs applauded. Adam looked around to find basically the entire lab staring at him. He turned redder than a rose.

"Okay that made my day," Stella was still laughing.

"Okay so back to work," Mac got straight to work.

"Bubble burster," Stella said under her breath.

"What was that? I don't think I caught it," Mac said.

"Nothing. Just nothing," Stella replied. Stella chuckled.

The dynamic duo continued to watch the monitor for hits in CODIS. No hits yet. They were discouraged but not hopeless. Finally they heard a ding.

"Two in as many days. I think we are on a roll," Stella told Mac. She made a call. She and Mac made their way to interrogation where Flack was waiting with the suspect. Mac went into the room behind the glass, and Stella went into the interrogation room.

"No assistance today?" Flack gestured to the fact that Stella was alone in the room.

"I think she can handle it," Mac stated. They watched as Stella interrogated the female suspect. It was going great until about ten minutes in to the questioning. Stella stood up and pushed the photos of the victim in front of the suspect. The suspect stood her ground, and Stella became more angry.

"This isn't going to end well. One of us is going to have to stop Stella before she goes too far," Flack worried out loud.

"I've got her," Mac told him as he walked out of the room behind the glass. He went inside.

"Stella," Mac said. She continued on.

"Stella," Mac again said. Still Stella didn't hear him. Mac grabbed her arm and stood her up.

"Stella," Mac fiercely told her. He led her out into the hall so they could talk.

"What Mac?" Stella glared.

"Stella you have to stop this. What is your next step to get her to talk? Huh. Stella what were you going to do next?" Mac asked rather sharply.

"I don't know, Mac," Stella looked away. Mac went into the interrogation room. He left her standing there.

"Miss Gritz, I'm Detective Taylor," Mac told the suspect. He began where Stella left off.

"We found your DNA under the victim's fingernails and on the knife used to kill her," Mac told her.

"Yeah you would find it on there," Miss Gritz said quietly.

"You killed Victoria Mitchell," Mac stated simply.

"Yeah and I would do it again. She slept with my fiancé," Miss Gritz replied. Mac had the officer in the room arrest her. He went back to the lab and was about to talk to Stella when he got a call. When he hung up, he went to talk to Stella. She was standing in the hallway.

**(Apologize- ****Timbaland**** (featuring One Republic))**

"Stella, guess who I just got a call from?" Mac asked her. He was angry. She knew that this wouldn't be a good conversation.

"I don't know Mac," Stella replied.

"Sinclair, he wants to know why you have so many complaints. Apparently, Miss Gritz filed a complaint against you. Stella, these have to stop," Mac ordered angrily. His voice was raised.

"It was an accident. I didn't mean to get that riled up," Stella also raised her voice.

"An accident? No, Stella, you are in control of your own actions. I can't keep taking the fall for you," Mac yelled. People in the lab started to notice. This is not good they thought.

"Mac take a look around. I'm not the only one around here who makes mistakes," Stella replied yelling.

"You have had the most mistakes. And don't you think for one minute that I haven't the same conversation with them as we're having now," Mac raged. Stella walked off fuming. Mac went to his office. He kicked his desk. He spent most of the day in there thinking about what was exchanged. Around lunch, he saw Stella. Here is my chance to apologize he thought. He walked quickly to catch up with her.

"Stella, I'm sorry. I over reacted," Mac told her. She blew him off. He stood in the middle of the hallway. Mac felt like the world was spinning around him. He stood there for what seemed like eternity but in reality ten minutes. Lindsay came up to him to see if he was okay.

"Mac, are you okay?" Lindsay was concerned. She could tell that Mac was not having a good day.

"I'm fine," Mac replied. Lindsay didn't believe him.

"Mac we know what happened. We could hear you in autopsy, just barely though," Lindsay managed a smile. Mac didn't see the humor.

"Lindsay, I'm fine. Please get back to work," Mac walked off to the break room. Stella was still in there sipping her coffee. She got up to leave when she saw him. He caught her arm.

"Stella, please, just listen to me. I'm sorry for what I said. It was tactless, and I could have been kinder instead of yelling at you," Mac's voice trailed off. Stella got out of his grip and walked away. She hadn't heard a word he said. Mac again stood there. After a couple of minutes he got a coffee and sat down at a table. He had his coffee in front of him. He stayed there the rest of shift. He just looked at the coffee. Mac didn't even take a drink out of the mug. He was stunned and didn't know what to do. Normally, if he had a problem he would ask Stella about it. Now he couldn't ask her anything.

**After Notes: For 1/10 of a second I considered having Stella tell Mac that it's too late to apologize, but that would just be weird if you were listening to the song as you read that part.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters, but if I did Mac and Stella would be together. Wow I've said that line a lot.**

**Notes: Okay so Mac and Stella are mad at each other. Will they be able to solve this? ****S****o I found the perfect song for this chapter**** It's called Do You Know? ****(The Ping Pong Song) by Enrique Iglesias.**** It fits this chapter perfectly. **

**Chapter 7**

**(Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song) by Enrique Iglesias)**

_Do you know? Do you know?_

_Do you know what it feels like loving someone that's in a rush to throw you away? _

_Do you know, do you know, do you know, do __ya_

_Do you know what it feels like to be the last one to know the lock on the door has changed?_

_If __birds flying south __is a sign of changes_

_At least you can predict this every year_

_Love, you never know the m__inute __it ends suddenly_

_I can't get it to speak_

_Maybe if I knew all the things it took to save us_

_I could fix the pain that bleeds inside of me_

_Look in your eyes to see something about me_

_I'm standing on the edge and I don't know what else to give._

_Do you know what it feels like loving someone that's in a rush to throw you away?_

_Do you know, do you know, do you know, do __ya_

_Do you know what it feels like to be the last one to __know the lock on the door has changed?_

_……………………………………………….._

Mac was sitting at his desk staring at the door. He was glassy eyed. He was desperately wishing he could go back in time and stop himself from yelling at Stella. Mac should have known that there was no turning back when he went to confront her. How was he supposed to know that this would be the result? No, Mac, there is no one to blame but yourself he told himself over and over again.

"Mac," Lindsay came into the office with Danny.

"Huh?" Mac snapped out of his daze.

"Did you even go home last night?" Lindsay asked.

"No, what time is it?" He inquired yawning.

"10 a.m." Lindsay replied. Mac looked at his clock to double check. Sure enough he had spent the night in his office just thinking. Mac shrugged. It didn't exactly register with him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Stella come in to the lab. He sighed. She didn't even glance at him when she walked by.

"Mac, did you hear what we just said?" Danny asked.

"What?" Mac wasn't paying attention. His focus was on Stella who was walking to the break room.

"Mac, go home. We can deal with things at the lab," Lindsay told him. Mac gave her a look.

"No, I'm fine. And for the record, I don't trust the lab with you two," Mac smirked. He went to the trace lab. Stella would be in DNA, and she wouldn't have to deal with him. He put on a lab coat.

"Mac, what are you doing in here?" Adam asked. He was coming in with Kendall. They were laughing about something.

"Running some trace," Mac replied concentrating on his work. Kendall left the trace lab to help Stella with DNA. Adam wasn't used to having anyone working with him in the trace lab. Mac was finished with the trace and was trying to find out what it was.

"Adam, do me a favor and tell me when that's done," Mac ordered as he took off his lab coat and gloves. Mac left for the break room for some coffee.

"Okay will do," Adam replied looking up to find Mac gone. He shrugged and put his headphones in. He started listening to _Running up That Hill _by Placebo. After that song was over he listened to _Hey There Delilah _by the Plain White T's. Mac finally came back during _Love Song _by Sara Bareilles. Adam was singing along.

"_Blank stares at blank pages. No easy way to say this. You mean well, but you make this hard on me. I'm not going write you __a love song cause__ you ask for it. Cause you need one you see. I'm not going to write you a love song __cause__ you tell me it's make or break in this if you're on your way. I'm not going to write you to stay,_" Adam sung. Mac was trying to keep a straight face.

"That's okay Adam. I just wanted the trace results not a love song," Mac told him. Adam was horrified. He turned around to Mac laughing.

"Mac, I didn't know that you were standing there," Adam was so embarrassed.

"I was serious. Do you have the trace results?" Mac asked.

"Yeah. It's carpet cleaner. Totally generic. Sorry that it wasn't more," Adam handed the trace results to Mac.

"Thanks," Mac said as he walked off. He had the case file in his right hand and the trace report in his left. He was placing the trace report in the file. Mac went to the DNA lab to find out whose DNA was under the victim's nails.

"Kendall, do you have the DNA on the Raft case?" Mac asked walking into the lab. He was looking at the case file.

"Yeah, still no hit in CODIS," Kendall replied. Mac sighed. Stella was working on a different case.

"Can you tell Stella that I'm sorry and that I over reacted?" Mac asked. Kendall told him she would. He left for his office. He wondered if Kendall would actually tell Stella that he was sorry. He knew that he had made a huge mistake. Mac didn't know if he would ever be able to right his wrong. He thought about going up to Stella saying," I'm sorry. I got onto you because I love you." That thought lasted all of one second. The second idea was worse. At last he just gave up. Mac didn't know how or even if they were going to make up. Shift was almost over, and Mac was tired. He hadn't slept in two days.

"Hey Mac, we are going to grab some beers when shift ends. Do you want to join us?" Hawkes was trying to get Mac out of the lab.

"I'm going to take a rain check. I have got to get home," Mac told him as he got his suit jacket off of his coat hook in his office. He put it on as he left the lab. When Mac got home, he crashed on his couch. He woke up the next morning to his preset alarm. Regardless to how he felt, Mac went through his morning routine. When he got to the lab, he was early, but then when was he not early. Mac got his coffee, and went to the trace lab where he began to run trace on some cold cases. Nothing new to specify them. Mac slammed his fist down. He was bothered by this, but that wasn't the only reason for his anger. Why couldn't Stella forgive him?

"Whatever," he mumbled. He put the trace evidence in its rightful box. Mac then put up the case files in the basement. When he got back up to his office, it was still 30 minutes till the start of shift. No one was in the lab. It was a kind of eerie situation that would bug a rookie, but not Mac. He found the silence a great place to think about what was troubling him.

"Whoa Mac. Two days in a row we find you in your office at the start of shift. How long have you been here?" Danny asked from the open door of the office.

"I don't know," Mac answered truthfully. Then a miracle happened. Flack called with a crime scene.

"Danny, Lindsay, get your kits ready we have a scene," Mac told them.

"Where at?" Danny asked.

"5th Avenue and 22nd Street," Mac replied getting his coat. It was a chilly day. The CSI's left for the scene.

"So this is how the super rich live," Danny said as he glimpsed the apartment crime scene.

"Well if this is how they die then I would rather stay poor," Lindsay stated looking at the gruesome homicide.

"Flack, who is our victim?" Mac asked the detective.

"James Montgomery. Where is Stella?" Flack didn't know about the fight.

"Wasn't in the lab when you called with the scene," Mac started processing around the body. Lindsay took the perimeter, and Danny took the bedroom.

"I asked for you to call her to come," Flack had no idea that Mac had no intention of calling Stella. He thought that it had just slipped Mac's mind.

"If you want her here then call her yourself," Mac fiercely said as he continued to process.

"Whoa, what happened to you two?" Flack asked, but Mac ignored him. He was busy photographing, bagging, and tagging. It would have been nice having another CSI around to photograph. Mac wasn't going to admit it though. After 9 hours of processing, the CSI's went back to the lab. Mac dropped off the trace for Adam to run. He dropped off some DNA for Kendall who was in the DNA lab again. Mac went up to autopsy.

"I was wondering when you were coming up here," Sid said as Mac entered.

"Well I'm here. What's the official COD?" Mac asked.

"Blunt force trauma," Sid replied.

"Okay if it was only blunt force trauma you would just send me the report. What else is there?" Mac questioned.

"Well actually I do," Sid was flattered. Mac rolled his eyes.

"I have finger prints around the wound. I already sent them to the print lab. They came back Grant Jacobs," Sid said handing the autopsy report to Mac. Mac called Flack and told him to pick this guy up. Three hours later, Mac was interrogating him.

"Grant, we found your prints on the victim," Mac told the suspect. The suspect was shaking and had several needle marks in his arm. Mac thought that the killing might have been drug- related.

"I never touched James," Grant said.

"Really? Because we found your prints on James and on the murder weapon," Mac showed him the picture of his prints on the murder weapon.

"That doesn't mean I killed him. What motive would I have?" Grant asked.

"Judging by your shaking and the needle marks in your arm, I would say you were looking for the next high. Maybe James was tired of funding your drugs," Mac told him.

"That wasn't how it went down. James was my dealer. He wouldn't give me the drugs after I paid him," Grant said realizing he was caught for drugs.

"We found drugs on you," Mac wasn't sure whether or not he believed this Grant Jacobs.

"That's because I took them after I killed him," Grant had the last word. The officer in the room arrested him.

"Mac, that was so easy. He just confessed," Flack was enjoying this short case.

"Yeah, it's weird though. Normally people aren't that willing to confess. Anyways we still have to run that DNA under James' fingernails against Grant's DNA," Mac told him. He wasn't sure if Grant had actually killed James.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: By now I hope you all realize that I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters. ****LOL.**** You all know that if I did then Mac and Stella would be together.**

**Notes: So did Grant kill James? Will Mac and Stella forgive each other? Will Flack ever find out what happened? Okay the last question is not relevant. The song at the beginning of this chapter is **_**The Scientist **_**by Coldplay****The second song is **_**Your Glasses **_**by Maria Mena.**

**Chapter 8**

_Come up to meet you, __Tell__ you I'm sorry, __You don't know how lovely you are.__I had to find you, __Tell__ you I need you, __Tell you I set you apart.__Tell me your secrets, __And__ ask me your questions, __Oh let's go back to the start.__Runnin__' in circles__Comin__' up tails, __Heads on the science apart.__Nobody said it was easy__It's such a shame for us to part.__Nobody said it was easy__No one ever said it would be this hard.__Oh take me back to the start.__I was just __guessin__At__ numbers and figures, __Pullin__' the puzzles apart.__Questions of science, __Science and progress, __Do__ not speak as loud as my heart.__Tell me you love me__Come back and haunt me,__Oh on I rush to the start.__Runnin__' in circles__Chasin__' our tails, __Comin__' back as we are.__Nobody said it was easy__Oh it's such a shame for us to part.__Nobody said it was easy__No one ever said it would be this hard.__I'm __goin__' back to the start.__Ahhooooooooooooooooo__Ahhooooooooooooooooo__Ahhooooooooooooooooo__Ahhooooooooooooooooo_

……………………………………………………..

Mac was pacing in the DNA lab. Never mind the fact that Stella was in there glaring at him. Mac was waiting on the results from the DNA under James Montgomery's fingernails.

"Mac, I have the results," Kendall broke the silence.

"What are they?" Mac asked. He might have been stalling to try to apologize to Stella, but he really did need the results.

"No match," Kendall handed him the results.

"But they are a result to Grant's brother?" Mac didn't expect this.

"Anthony Jacobs. He has one prior for stalking," Kendall walked out of the room. She was going to give the two CSI's a chance to work this out. Stella was still glaring at Mac, and he didn't know what to say.

"Uh… Stella, I… uh want to say that I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted like that. I really am sorry," Mac stuttered, but it was too late. Stella had already walked out of the room. Mac felt worse than when he had when he yelled at her. Flack was walking into the DNA lab to ask Mac what the results are. He needed to know whether he had to arrest someone else. He heard what happened. He didn't know what he should say to Mac if anything at all.

"Mac, do you have the results on the DNA?" Flack cut the tension with a knife.

"Yeah, here it is," Mac was indifferent as he handed the report to Flack. He looked at the report and was confused.

"Come on, Mac. You know that I can't read this," Flack said.

"It's Grant's brother, Anthony," Mac told him. He walked off.

"Okay, you could have just said that," Flack mumbled. He went to pick up Anthony. He called Mac to get to interrogation. Mac got there. He began to interrogate the suspect.

"Okay, I did it. That scumbag was cheating my brother," Anthony confessed. He was arrested. Mac went back to his office.

……………………………………………………………

_What could you possibly see in me?__Is it my soul hung out to dry?__I think my dysfunctional family__Has__ shaped it __thoughtout__ my life__What could you possibly like in me?__Do you like my ability to bend?__I think my fear of intimacy__Has shaped the time we spend__No it's not you it's me__And it's not us it's them__Sure it's not her__It's the way she moves you__But she kisses harder __then__ me__She kisses harder __then__ me__I always looked in through your glasses__But all I could see__Is the specter of me reflected__The empty shell of me__What could you possibly love in me?__Is it the way I wear my smile__It__ hangs from the tip of my tongue you see__Oh this might take awhile...__No it's not you it's me__And it's not us it's them__Sure it's not her__It's the way she moves you__But she kisses harder __then__ me__She kisses harder __then__ me..._

……………………………………………………………….

Stella looked up and saw Mac sitting in his office. What had she done to him? A wave of guilt swept through the detective. She missed her best friend. She hated being mad at him. She hated loving him. How everyday she had to come and act like she was not in love with her boss. That was it. She had to apologize to him, but not yet.

"Stella, you okay? You've been standing there for a couple minutes staring at nothing," Hawkes snuck up behind her.

"Oh, I'm fine. Any new cases? I heard Flack closed his," Stella confirmed with him.

"Sorry Stell, no new cases. Do you know what's up with Mac?" He asked her as if he didn't know.

"What's up with him?" Stella responded acting though she wasn't the cause.

"He has been acting strangely lately. Strange even for Mac," Hawkes laughed and got a smile out of Stella.

"Sorry, I have no clue," Stella lied through her teeth.

"Okay, Stella, we all know what happened between you two. One of you is at fault, but that doesn't matter. When Mac isn't concentrating on the science, the lab doesn't either," Hawkes told her. She was stunned. He left her to her thoughts and went to the break room. Stella went on with her normal work, but at the end of shift she started to walk to Mac's office. Okay, Stella, don't back down she encouraged herself. She knocked on the door.

"Come in," Mac said. He didn't look up. When he did, he was shocked. What was she doing here?

"Mac," Stella began.

"Stella, don't say anything. I over reacted, and I'm sorry," Mac told her.

"Mac, I… uh… I," What was she going to say? I love you? She didn't have a chance. Mac embraced her. The anger they had felt at each other vanished on the spot.

**Notes: Sorry for the very, very short chapter, but it's not over I promise. Be prepared for more chapters and longer chapters. I know this isn't much but just consider it a preview for better chapters ahead. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters, but I wish I did. I guess I will say this again for emphasis. If I did own the characters Mac and Stella would be together.**

**Notes: I am so, so sorry for that chapter. I am also sorry that the lyrics turned out how they did. Let's see. I promised you a longer chapter, and I believe I used the word better. Hmm. Well I hope you think this is better. And thank you, thank you, ****thank**** you for the reviews. They made my week.**

**Chapter 9**

Everyone in the lab noticed the difference in their boss. Mac had become himself again. Danny laughed about the fight. He said it was like cats fighting. Mac and Stella didn't think it was funny. They were so close from losing each other. At least that's how Mac saw it. He was relieved that this was over. It was definitely the worst fight they had ever had. How was it that he had let it get that far?

"I brought you some coffee," Mac told Stella. He had brought her food and coffee and such since they made up. It was like he was paying a debt for acting like that.

"Mac, you didn't have to," Stella took the coffee cup anyways. She was glad that they were on speaking terms again.

"But I did," Mac rebutted. He sat across from her in the break room. Mac sighed. The lab was perking up. The silence of the start of shift had dissipated. The lab techs were manning their stations. The other CSI's had just come into the lab.

"Morning," Lindsay chimed as she entered the break room. Danny and Hawkes were right behind her. Mac looked up and nodded, an acknowledgement of the greeting.

"Morning," Stella replied finishing her coffee. She got up and threw away the cup. Stella returned to Mac's side and placed her hand on his shoulder. I shouldn't have done that was her first thought when she saw the team's looks.

"Any scenes to go to?" Hawkes asked breaking the silence.

"Not that I know of," Mac replied. Another silence took place. The team looked at one another trying to find something to talk about. It was one of those rare times in the lab where they couldn't find something to talk about.

"So… um… Brett Favre finally retired," Lindsay tried at a conversation.

"Yeah and after 17 years too," Danny said. Another silence engulfed them. Really there was nothing to talk about that wouldn't invade each other's personal lives. It was their last choice, but after a while it seemed ideal.

"Hawkes, did you ask that detective out?" Stella asked. The CSI's were desperate to end this silence.

"Yeah, we went out last week," Hawkes refused to say any details of what happened. Not because it didn't work out, but because he didn't care to talk about his personal life. Mac finished his coffee. He shot the cup like a basketball right into the trash can.

"It's times like this that make me miss Montana," Lindsay sighed.

"Why?" Hawkes asked.

"Because in Montana, when it's quiet in the lab, you can hear. Here, even when it's silent, you can't," Lindsay explained. The CSI's didn't understand. It seemed quiet to them. They were so used to the sounds of the city that it was peaceful.

"You can't hear the city?" Lindsay asked bewildered. The CSI's shook their heads.

"You will get used to it," Mac told her.

"I definitely miss the music. Our supervisor played music in the lab," Lindsay thought out loud.

"Music is not the best thing for this lab," Mac was referring to the many times they had found Adam dancing and singing in the trace lab. Danny half laughed. Stella and Lindsay gave weak smiles. The lab slowly seemed to come back to normal. It helped to have Mac and Stella back to the way they were. The atmosphere was somewhat different almost flirty around the pair. The CSI's wouldn't admit that out loud even to each other, but they knew that each other had the same thought in mind. They saw the way Mac and Stella looked at each other. It was a more than friends look.

"You with us?" Mac asked Danny, Lindsay, and Hawkes.

"Uh… yeah I just zoned out," the three CSI's replied along that line. The sun was reaching its highest point in the sky. The CSI's were starting to get hungry. They didn't feel like going anywhere so they 'feasted' on the chips in the vending machines.

"Mac, Lindsay and I are going to take March 31st off. We are going to the Yankees home opener since Montana hasn't gone to a Yankees game," Danny announced.

"Who are they playing?" Stella asked. She was clueless when it came to sports.

"Toronto," Mac and Danny told her at the same time. She put her hands up in a mock defense. She remembered the conversation she and Mac had about the Yankees losing to the Red Sox in the World Series. They were processing Sonny Sassone's car. She remembered Mac's expression when she told him that she thought A-Rod was cute. She wanted to laugh at that face he made.

"Stella, I swear you may know everything here in the lab, but when it comes to sports well that's a different story," Mac laughed. He too thought of that conversation. Maybe he would take Stella to a baseball game. He laughed to himself at the thought. She probably would think that's stupid Mac thought.

"Real funny Mac, just hilarious," Stella's sarcasm was apparent.

"Anyways, Mac, can we get the day?" Danny asked.

"Sure," came the reply. The CSI's continued talking until around the end of shift. Mac got his coat from his office and left. The other CSI's grabbed their jackets and coats and left. It was the start of October. For the first time in months, Mac actually got a full night of sleep. Technically, it wasn't more than 7 hours, but for Mac that was a lot. When Mac drove to the lab in the morning, he noticed that fall had set in, and the leaves were changing colors. Central Park looked unreal. Mac arrived at the lab early like always. Stella was there soon. They talked until an hour after shift started. Mac's phone rang.

"Taylor," Mac's customary greeting was made.

"Mac, we have a scene. In Times Square too so get Stella and get over here," Flack told him.

"Okay," Mac hung up.

"I'll get my kit," Stella knew without him saying anything. They rode over to the scene. Flack was standing by the body waiting for them. Mac and Stella got out of the vehicle and walked to him.

"What do we have Flack?" Mac asked.

"Barbra Willows. 35 years old and she owns a small dance studio," Flack told them. The two CSI's began to process and discussing out loud the evidence and the context of their findings.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Hmm… I wonder how many times I will have to put this. I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters, and like always if I did Mac and Stella be together.**

**Notes: I hoped you all enjoyed my past chapter. I have to admit this is getting hard. Fear not though, I will keep up. Please enjoy this chapter.**

**Chapter 10**

"What do you think, Mac?" Stella and he were in the reconstruction lab. They were trying to figure out the blood spatter pattern.

"It's almost as if it were printed on," Mac looked at the spatter. They had looked at it with every possibility, but it still confused them.

"What do you mean?" Stella looked at him.

"Okay, this may seem strange, but bear with me. In art they have a process called print making. Basically, the artist draws a picture of what he wants. He would draw it on wood. Then he would carve it out. After he finishes carving, he would ink it up and put it under a press. The image would copy onto the piece of paper under it. The image would be a reverse of the drawing. To me this is what it looks like. If you look closely at this drop here, you will see that it has a corner," Mac gave his opinion.

"Are you telling me that our murderer printed blood spatter?" Stella asked.

"I'm saying it's a possibility. I've heard of stranger," Mac shrugged. They kept working at the spatter. After two hours, they were content with Mac's explanation.

"Mac, this guy is sick. The fake spatter is the vic's blood. How did he get the blood without disturbing the pool?" Stella wondered out loud.

"I don't know. I will have the blood tested for any preservatives. Meanwhile, we need to go up to autopsy," Mac told her. After dropping off the blood in tox, they went up to autopsy.

"Glad you two could make it," Sid rang out from the autopsy table. The vic in their case was on top of it. The two CSI's cautiously approached the table as if they thought something might jump out at them or maybe just Sid. Mac and Stella waited for the other to say something.

"Sid, what do you have for us?" Mac braved it. Who knows what the ME would tell them?

"A women who was stabbed," Sid simply said. Mac and Stella thought is that it.

"Anything else Sid?" Stella asked.

"Well as a matter of fact your vic had a needle mark in her arm. Here's what's weird. I didn't find any evidence that she was a drug user, and it was post-mortem," Sid gloated at his expertise.

"Thanks, Sid," Mac told him as he got the autopsy report. Stella and he turned to leave.

"Wait," Sid called after them. They turned back around.

"Yes?" Mac asked the ME.

"I found some sort of wood in her stab wounds which by the way were V-shaped," Sid replied.

"Has trace identified it yet?" Mac inquired.

"No, I also need you two to take it to the trace lab for me," Sid handed Mac the test tube.

"Thanks," Mac and Stella walked out. Mac put a rush on the trace.

"See, if that is the wood cork if the print making that would confirm my theory that our suspect is an artist. A carver has a V-shape," Mac told her. She agreed. Adam walked up to them in the hallway.

"Mac, Stella, I tested the blood. There were no preservatives," he handed the tox results to them.

"Thanks, Adam," Stella called after him. They looked at the results. Just as he had said, there were no preservatives. Her blood was as clean as a whistle.

"This case is just weird," Mac told her as he opened the door to the break room.

"So we know for sure that the blood was taken directly from her, but we don't know what the mystery wood like trace is," Stella sat down. Mac nodded.

"Do you want anything?" Mac asked. She shook her head. He got a coffee and sat down.

"This is just strange. How could our only evidence be trace?" Stella asked him.

"Let's go over this again. Our victim was in Times Square where she was stabbed with a V-shaped blade. The blood spatter from the cast off seems to be a print which is consistent to the blade being a print making tool. Our victim had a needle stuck in her arm post-mortem. She has no drug history. We are still waiting on that trace," Mac went through the case with Stella. He stood up and paced while he talked.

"Wait no more," Kendall said from the doorway. She had the results in hand.

"So what is it?" The CSI's were anxious to catch this guy.

"You know balsa wood?" Kendall asked.

"Yeah," Stella said.

"Well, it's not that," Kendall told her.

"Okay, what is it?" Mac asked.

"That cork they use in print making," Kendall handed them the results and walked out. Mac smiled.

"Okay, let me give the update to Flack. I will tell him we are looking for an artist," Stella exclaimed. They finally had a lead. She leapt up from her chair.

"Okay," Mac told her.

"Thanks Mac," she told him. Before she walked out, she kissed him on the cheek. Mac blushed a little, and Stella realized what she had done when she was halfway through dialing Flack.

"Flack," Don answered his phone.

"It's Stella. We have a lead," Stella told him.

"I'm listening," Flack replied.

"Good to know. Anyway our suspect is most likely an artist. He probably does print making," Stella said.

"Okay. You do realize that doesn't really narrow it down don't you?" Flack asked.

"Well you're the detective. See if our vic knew any artists," Stella hung up. She sighed. Stella knew that she would have to tell Mac that Flack was looking for a suspect. This is going to be so awkward was the only thing in her mind.

"Uh, Mac, I… uh… I have… uh… I have Flack looking for a suspect," Stella managed to get out. He looked up directly into her eyes.

"Okay, thanks Stella," Mac said. He finished his coffee. He cleaned out the mug. Mac sat back down. He sighed.

"Mac, do you want something?" Stella said trying to calm the butterflies in her stomach.

"Stella, I just had a coffee. Are you okay?" Mac laughed though deep down he too felt the same for her.

"Uh, yeah, this case just has me going backwards," Stella quickly lied. Their eyes locked.

"Stella, if you need to go home and rest, I can take care of this for right now. I'll tell you what you go home and relax, and if anything changes I will call you," Mac offered.

"Really, Mac, I'm fine. What about you? You look terrible Mac," Stella was concerned.

"Thanks, Stella," Mac said in mock hurt.

"Mac, you know what I mean. You look like you haven't slept in days. Are you sure you are okay?" Stella asked.

"Stella, I'm fine," Mac smiled.

"Okay, how about we go over the case and see if we missed something," Stella sat down next to Mac. They spent hours looking at the case file. When they came up with nothing new, the duo looked at it from a different angle. Shift had been over for two hours, but the detectives were so driven to finding this guy they kept working. Stella had fallen asleep. Mac was fighting a losing battle of trying to stay awake. He was losing until he saw something on the blood spatter. It was tiny and barely visible. At first Mac thought he was hallucinating because he was so tired, but sure enough it was a print. Very carefully so he wouldn't disturb Stella, Mac got up and went to the print lab. He ran the print through AFIS. Because it was taking so long, Mac went back to the break room. He got a coffee. After the sun had barely started to rise, the print found a match. The beeping woke Mac up with a start. He looked at his watch. It was 5 AM, two hours before shift. Mac went to the print lab. The match came to a Nathan Sands. He was in the system for armed robbery. Mac looked at his current job. Nathan was an art teacher.

"Flack," A sleepy Don answered his phone.

"Don, it's Mac," the CSI replied.

"Mac, do you have any idea what time it is?" Flack yawned.

"Two hours before shift. Flack, we have a suspect. One Nathan Sands," Mac told him.

"And this couldn't have waited till shift?" Flack asked.

"Flack, this guy could get away because you are too tired to get up," Mac condemned him.

"Mac, I'm halfway there," Flack said quickly.

"Yeah," Mac hung up. He walked to the break room. Stella was still sleeping. He woke her up.

"Mac," Stella said a little angry at him for waking her up.

"Stella, I'm so sorry, but I knew you would want to know this. We have a suspect. Flack is going to find him," Mac told her. Stella forgave him.

"Stella, do you want something?" Mac asked her.

"Yeah, thanks Mac," Stella said. He started the coffee up and tossed her a protein bar.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own the CSI****:NY**** characters, but if I did Mac and Stella would be together.**** I do not own the Ocean's characters.**

**Notes: ****Thanks for all of your reviews. I'm bad at replying so if I forgot to reply I am so sorry.**

**Chapter 11**

"That was the weirdest interview I have ever been in," Stella told Mac as they entered the break room.

"Probably in my top 3. I've seen weirder," Mac got a water bottle out of the machine.

"Do tell," Stella smiled. She had heard most of these, but even Mac could surprise her.

"Trust me, you don't want to know," Mac laughed, and Stella joined in. It had been sometime since they had been able to enjoy themselves.

"Heard that you two solved that case," Danny told them. Mac nodded.

"After shift we are going to Sullivan's. Well Flack, Danny, me, and maybe Hawkes are going. Do you two want to join us?" Lindsay asked walking into the room.

"I think I am going to take a rain check," Mac replied. He looked over at Stella.

"Me too," Stella agreed.

"Okay. Wow shift ends in two hours," Lindsay looked at her wrist watch. Hawkes walked in.

"The entire team is here," Mac said.

"Actually I'm in a bit of a hurry. I'm going to a play. Can I get off early?" Hawkes asked.

"Sure," Mac replied. Hawkes left in a hurry.

"Well, I will be in my office until shift ends," Mac got up and left. Danny, Lindsay, and Stella stayed in the break room.

"Who do you think Hawkes is going with?" Lindsay asked. They all knew, but they wanted to make sure that the others thought the same way.

"What do you mean?" Danny got a cup of coffee. He put in some sugar and cream.

"Well, you don't go to a play alone," Lindsay stated. She also got a coffee.

"He's probably going with that new detective," Stella said. It made sense. Hawkes had been seen dropping Higgins off at the precinct.

"I wonder what they will see," Lindsay thought out loud. There were so many good plays out there that time of year. The three CSI's talked until shift ends. Stella decided to wait and talk to Mac. Danny and Lindsay left. The lab techs gradually departed. Still Mac was in his office.

"Mac," Stella knocked on his door and entered. He looked up and smiled. He placed the pen cap back on the pen he was writing with.

"Stella, I was just about to find you," Mac told her. He was putting up the form he had finished.

"Why?" she asked. He returned his desk to its organized state.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come to my place for dinner maybe watch even watch a movie," Mac was starting to get nervous. He looked into her eyes fearing what she might say.

"Let me get my coat," Stella told him as she turned around. After five minutes, they met by the elevator. Mac drove to his place. After about an hour, Stella came to his place. Mac had prepared his 'famous' cheeseburgers. When they had finished, Stella decided to stay longer and watch a movie with Mac.

"Your choice," Mac told her. She spent a few minutes looking through his DVD collection.

"Okay, let's see. I guess Ocean's 12," Stella picked it out of the selection of DVD's. Mac put it in, and they settled on the couch. Around halfway through the movie, Stella realized that she was in Mac's arms. As weird as it seemed to be in her boss' arms, she didn't care. Tonight, he wasn't her boss. Tonight, they weren't just friends. She returned her attention to the movie. Ocean had just met the Night Fox, and the game had begun. Stella laughed to herself. It was so ironic that she a crime scene investigator and a cop would watch this movie. The characters were so likable. Stella always loved the part where the Night Fox found out that he lost. The Ocean's series made her laugh.

"Stella, shall we watch another one?" Mac asked. He took out the Ocean's 12 disc and replaced it with Ocean's 13, his personal favorite of the series. He took his spot back on the couch. After a few minutes, Stella was back in his arms. To him, it was where she belonged. She moved a little closer to him. The part where Rusty and Danny watch Oprah was coming up.

"Mac, I could see you as Danny watching Oprah and Danny being Rusty and coming in to the break room and watching it with you," Stella told him.

"You think I watch Oprah. Okay, that one time didn't count. I was with you," Mac said when he saw her smirk. Stella laughed.

"Well if Danny is Rusty that makes Lindsay Isabelle," Stella replied.

"Well if I'm Ocean then I guess that makes you Tess," Mac leaned in towards Stella.

"Maybe," Stella also leaned in. They continued to lean in, movie completely forgotten, until they kissed. They deepened it. They had crossed the line between friends and more than friends, and they knew that there was no going back. When they did part, Stella rested her head on Mac's chest. He held her close. Nothing was going to mess this up. He never wanted to lose her. That fight finally knocked him to his senses, and he realized exactly how much he needed Stella. They didn't watch any of the rest of the movie. They were intoxicated by each other's presence. Mac and Stella kissed again. Nothing they could do could show how much love they had for each other. Stella fell asleep on Mac's chest. Mac kissed her head. Stella would be there all night, and she would be there when he woke up the next morning.

**THE END**

**Notes: I hoped you enjoyed my story. I know that this chapter was short. I enjoyed all of your reviews. **


	12. Story Playlist

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these songs or bands.**

**Notes: I thought I would give you a playlist of every song I used or would fit. Some of these songs are just good heartbreak songs.**

How Far We've Come- Matchbox Twenty

Apologize- Timbaland featuring One Republic

Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song)- Enrique Iglesias

Running Up That Hill- Placebo

Hey There Delilah- Plain White T's

Love Song- Sara Bareilles

Watching Airplanes- Gary Allen

Songs About Rain- Gary Allen

The Scientist- Coldplay

Your Glasses- Maria Mena

Waiting On The World To Change- John Mayer

Gravity- You Are I Am

So Much For My Sad Song- Chris Rice

You and Me- Lighthouse

**Just some songs that go with the story. **


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